WR: Can I Borrow the Car?
by clair beaubien
Summary: Another in my Winchesters Rising AU. Sam needs to borrow the Impala. Lisa, Ben & Sarah are mentioned but do not appear in the story.


A/N 1: Happily, Sarah (the antiques dealer) is back in Sam's life by this point in these series of my stories.

A/N 2: I like these series of stories, but I want to acknowledge up front that I am straying out 'supernatural' territory with them, as the boys grow into normal lives.

* * *

"Hey, Dean? Can I borrow the car? A couple nights a week for a couple months?"

Dean was at Sam's 'closet' - as he called the one-room-plus-bathroom Sam'd been living in for over a year. Lisa was out doing something with her sister, Ben was at a sleepover, and Dean and Sam were sharing an evening of tacos and beer and Transformers on DVD.

"Sure, you can borrow it. What's going on?"

Dean was leaning against the low bookshelf that separated the 'kitchen' from the 'bedroom/frontroom', watching Sam slice the veggies and shred the cheese for the tacos.

"I - um - I'm going to be taking classes, down near the mall. A couple nights a week. It's too far to walk."

He didn't look at Dean when he answered, which meant he was embarrassed about something, which meant Dean had to put a special emphasis in his voice when he asked,

"_Oh? Classes? What kind of classes do they teach down at the mall?"_

Sam rolled his eyes and chopped the tomato in front of him with a little more zeal.

"It's not _at_ the mall, it's across the street from the mall. H&R Block. I'm going to learn how to do taxes."

"Taxes? You're going to do _taxes_?" Dean was more than shocked. Yeah, ever since Ilchester, hunts everywhere were down to the point of being actually rare, but - _taxes_? "Isn't that a little - _mundane_?"

Sam shrugged and chopped and shrugged again.

"You know, I helped Mrs. Hanratty's granddaughter do her taxes last spring. I mean - it was her first return, her first job, so it was the EZ forms, which were nothing, but it was - it was _fun_, you know? Fun to do something and accomplish something that didn't come with the risk of being disemboweled or eternally damned. I just thought I could try maybe doing it for real next year, as a job, a real job that I'd get paid for and maybe if I made enough money I could upgrade out of this 'closet' like you've been hounding me to do since I moved in. I just - I thought I could try."

Dean took a sip of his beer and considered many things: Sam still wasn't looking at him, Sam was babbling in run-on sentences trying to convince Dean of something he didn't need convincing of, and Sam was _blushing._ Dean figured what was going on and bit back a smile and tried to keep his voice even.

"Sam?"

In answer, Sam tossed down his knife and finally turned to Dean.

"_Sarah said I should think about it."_ He said in a rush. "She thinks I'd be good at it. She's friends with a guy who's a Senior VP of Block, and he told her that people who do really well in the class a lot of times get hired by the company and that if a person does _really_ well during tax season, they even can make enough to not have to work the rest of the year. I mean - I don't know that I'll even be good enough to pass the class, let alone get hired, but - you know - I thought I could try."

"Right - _you_ might not finish at the top of your class." Dean said, with no small pride. "I wouldn't want to live on _those_ odds."

Sam kind of shrugged a nod and gave a small smile, acknowledging the compliment and grateful for it, and went back to his chopping and shredding.

"So - what would you do with the rest of the year, then? After taxes?" Dean asked. "Maybe - oh, I don't know - _learn antique appraising_?" He tried to hide his grin behind another sip of beer but totally gave up trying when Sam's blush deepened. Sam and Sarah had been successfully negotiating a long-distance relationship five months now, since March when Dean opened the door for her back into Sam's life, and Dean could _not_ be happier that Sam was finally letting himself have a chance at normal again. Even if 'normal' was turning out to be as mundane as doing taxes.

"She thinks I'd be good at that, too." Sam said. "She thinks - y'know, now that her Dad is married again and she's been running their traveling appraisal side of the business - she thinks she could maybe set up an office here in town, since she's on the road a lot anyway, she doesn't have to be based in New York. She said she'd help me learn the business, if I wanted." He shook his head and got a pinched look between his eyes. "But that's - that's all way too far in the future. I just want to see if I can pass this taxes class and upgrade myself out of working at the bar. I just want to take it one step at a time, make sure I'm not screwing myself or anybody else."

The 'screwing anybody else **_again'_** remained unspoken, but Dean heard it loud and clear anyway.

"Sounds like a plan." He said. "Sounds like a _good_ plan. I'll get you some keys made up for the car. Take her whenever you want."

"Thanks."

They took their beer and tacos to the couch and Sam started up the DVD.

The End.


End file.
